Penny Parker Mystery Stories No. 10 - Ghost Beyond the Gate

What better way to close out the month of October than to read a Penny Parker mystery? This series has truly been a joy to read, and while not all of the stories have been outstanding (some have only been "good," while others have only been "great"), this one definitely stands out as one of the outstanding ones.  The story reads much like an adult mystery, rather than one aimed at children.  As the series progresses, it is evident Mildred A. Wirt (Benson) has gotten a better feel not only for her characters, but also for writing mysteries that are more dangerous and more complicated, dealing with some very real issues that were being faced by her readers at that time.

Ghost Beyond the Gate, published in 1943, is the tenth book in the series.  The mystery involves not only a black market tire scheme (a very real thing during World War II!), but also centers around Penny's father, Anthony Parker, who has disappeared.  The story opens with Penny and her best friend, Louise, enjoying a ride in Penny's homemade iceboat, aptly named the Icicle, on the frozen Big Bear River (p. 1).  Of course, there is a mishap, and the girls, although having a great time, have to pull the boat back to the car, parked at the Riverview Yacht Club (p. 3).  It is there they discover Penny's car is missing - and they find it pushed over into a nearby ditch, all of its tires missing!  It turns out there is a huge market for tires right now (during the war), and so a gang of thieves are stealing and re-selling tires to individuals who need them and can't get them due to the government's ban on sales of new tires (p. 36).  As it turns out, this actually occurred back in the early 1940s, when the U.S. government placed a ban on the sale of new tires for automobiles at the end of 1941, which resulted in the black market flourishing!

If this story sounds somewhat familiar (as it did to me), well, that's because Wirt used a very similar plt in her first Penny Nichols book, Penny Nichols Finds a Clue (you can find my review of that book here: Penny Nichols Finds a Clue).  In that book, there was a ring of tire thieves who were stealing not just tires, but also other car parts as well and re-selling them on the black market.  In any event, in this book, Penny's father is planning to expose the criminals; however, on his way to see the state prosecutor, Mr. Parker is involved in an automobile accident and literally disappears!  A witness claims a woman drove by and offered him a ride to the hospital (p. 43), but after an exhaustive search, it turns out Mr. Parker was never admitted to any hospital in Riverview!  So, where did he go?  And did his disappearance have anything to do with the evidence he had with him that would put an end to the tire thieves' activities?  What is interesting here is that the only person who had knowledge of what evidence Mr. Parker possessed was Jerry Livingston, the Star's star reporter.  But he took a much-needed vacation to the Canadian wilds before heading into the Army Air Corps in just a few weeks (p. 33).  I have to wonder what the full extend of Wirt's connection to Canada is, because it seems she uses Canadian locations in quite a number of her personally written books.

So, now with two mysteries on her hands - the tire thieves and her missing father, Penny must work overtime to figure out what is going on.  But Wirt doesn't stop there.  With her father gone, and the Star's editor in the hospital with appendicitis, assistant editor Harley Schirr has taken over the publishing of the newspaper.  Penny is suspicious of the man, because he has been insistent that Mr. Parker will not be found, and is even likely to be dead!  When Schirr fires the paper's elevator operator, Penny uses her position as Mr. Parker's daughter to get him reinstated, reminding Schirr that "Only Dad's money is invested here..." (p. 67).  She then catches him going through her father's safe (p. 72), which results in her "firing" the assistant editor (p. 74)!  The staff of the paper sides with Penny, and before you know it, she's running her father's paper, while still trying to figure out where her father is.

Now, here's where the story really heats up.  Penny actually goes to the police for help (can you believe it?  a children's mystery series protagonist actually going to the police for assistance?!), and they encourage her to offer a $5,000 reward for information on Mr. Parker (p. 86).  That may not sound like too much by today's standards, but if you think about the fact that this book was published back in 1943, that amount would equate to $88,956 in today's dollar!  That's quite a lot of money for Mr. Parker!  Oh, and it is around this point that Penny first sees the "ghost" that the elevator operator told her about - a white-robed figure that paced back and forth in front of what everyone says is an abandoned house (p. 95).  It seems like yet one more mystery to add to Penny's plate - until she gets a possible clue to her father's whereabouts, and discovers the woman who holds that clue happens to be staying at that very same house!  And to further connect the mysteries, Penny also believes the ghost haunting that house is none other than her own father (p. 140).

The mystery is definitely a complicated one, and Wirt pulls out all the stops.  There is definitely a lot of danger involved - not necessarily for Penny, but definitely for her father - especially when he is inadvertently turned over to the very criminals that he was threatening to expose before he disappeared!  Wirt plays up a few "bait and switch" plot devices, leading readers to believe certain things about a couple of the characters, and then reveals them to be exactly the opposite by the end of the story.  And Penny's iceboat at the beginning was not just a quirky way to the start the story - that boat plays a very important part near the climactic moments of the tale, particularly with respect to restoring Mr. Parker's memory (did I mention he had amnesia due to the car accident?).  

As with most of her books, Wirt plays very loose with her timelines in the story.  Jerry Livingston is said to be heading into the Army Air Corp in just "a couple of weeks" (p. 33).  Yet, the events of the story take place over the course of at least two weeks, if not longer, and then Mr. Parker's recovery takes another week or more, and after the criminals are caught, Penny is worried Jerry may not make it home in time to testify at the trial (p. 207), which would have to be at least several weeks out (since no trial occurs immediately after a criminal is arrested).  So, all-in-all, Jerry was gone for at least a month or more before returning to Riverview - which leaves one to wonder what the Air Corp had to say about him not showing up in that "couple of weeks" time frame!

One thing I did find rather amusing in the book is that early in the story, Penny sits down for breakfast and has "orange juice, two slices of toast, four pancakes, and then, somewhat concerned lest she lose her slim figure, debated whether to ask for another helping" (p. 30).  That's quite a hefty breakfast!  Yet, later in the book, after her father has been missing for what we can assume is at least a week or more, Wirt writes that "Penny had lost so much weight she looked thin and sallow" (p. 126).  Thus, in the span of just 100 pages, Penny goes from being ravenous and worrying about her weight to being "thin and sallow."  That's quite a change in such a short period of time.

There's also a remark made by the deskman at the Star that caught my attention. When Penny inquires as to whether anyone has sighted her father, the deskman responds with, "Your father's been seen in every section of the city from the RIVER to the HEIGHTS" [emphasis added] (p. 121).  Of course, everyone knows Nancy Drew lives in River Heights, and Benson wrote a number of the early Nancy Drew books, so this is obviously a little nod to Benson's other work - and if it's not, then that's an awfully funny coincidence!

Again, this series just seems to get better and better with each book, and I can definitely see why Benson felt these books were among her favorite to write!

RATING:  10 snow white bathrobes out of 10 for providing a suspenseful mystery without the life-threatening chapter cliffhangers, but with plenty of danger and distress to keep the pages turning!

Zatanna: The Jewel of Gravesend - a DC Comics graphic novel

Zatanna has long been one of my favorite DC Comics characters (after Huntress and Power Girl, of course!).  I was never fond of her first couple of costumes, but truly fell in love with her when George Perez redesigned her costume in Justice League of America #187.  I also loved the fact that her magic spells were spoken backwards (of course, over the years, writers have not only done that in different ways - from keeping the words in the correct order, just spoken backwards to speaking entire sentence backwards), as it gave her something different than just a typical magic-user.  I've purchased all of her comic series (there haven't been many, and sadly, the never lasted long), and I purchased the previous graphic novels aimed at younger readers.  This latest graphic novel, though, is not aimed for children, and it provides a new, unique re-imagining of Zatanna's origin.

 

In The Jewel of Gravesend, written by Alys Arden with art by Jacquelin de Leon, Zatanna has been raised by Ezra and Lola Starr, stage magicians who were friends with Zatanna's parents.  Her mother died and her father is believed dead, and Zatanna is completely unaware of her parents' true magical abilities - Ezra has worked hard to keep that a secret.  But he has kept other secrets as well ... meanwhile, Zatanna has managed to live a somewhat normal life near Coney Island, New York, where her best friends, Izzy and Kenia, also enjoy the carney life.  Zatanna also has a boy who she loves - young Alexei.  The only problem is, his family is mafia, and they run a casino beneath the Golden Elephant where Zatanna lives with the Starrs (yes, the building really is shaped like a huge elephant!).  The main problem Zatanna has is Ezra's constant attempts to involve her in his magic shows.  She wants no part of them.

Until she and her friends check out the new magic and mermaid show, in which they find strange "mirror-script" along the wall.  Zatanna speaks the words, having no idea what they mean - and having no clue that her magical ability has been sparked, giving those words power and causing a near fatal accident! Suddenly, those words that appeared backwards look normal to Zatanna.  And so, her adventure begins as she starts to realize that she has the ability to cast spells and make things happen simply by speaking them backwards.  But someone else is aware of that ability, and that someone will do anything to get that power away from her.

Arden's re-imagining is a really good story.  There's an underlying Romeo/Juliet romance with Alexei and Zatanna ... there's the young girl coming into her own story of Zatanna discovering her powers ... there's the ultimately betrayal caused by the lies surrounding her past and her father ... and there is the unexpected surprise at the end that costs Zatanna way more than she could ever have imagined.  The origin story of most heroes begins with some kind of family tragedy, and this one is no different.  However, it is a far cry from Zatanna's original origin in the comics, and by the time the climatic moments hit, you will have found yourself so invested in the character that they are going to hit you, as the reader, as well.  I cannot deny that my heart broke for poor Zee, as she has to let go of everything in order to move forward to become the hero we all know she becomes.

The art on the book is very beautiful, and the colors are almost (dare I say it?) - magical!  The blues, the pinks, and the purples are brilliantly blended to provide an atmosphere very fitting for the story.  Yes, they are dark, but then, to a degree, so is the story.  While I doubt we will ever see any more stories with this version of Zatanna, I would love to see an ongoing series set in this world, just to see where Zee goes from here.  This is a story of love, magic, and family that is most definitely worth the read.

RATING:  10 blooming flowers out of 10 for a stunning new take on a beloved character that has everything a great story should have to make it an enjoyable read.

Snoops, Inc. # 1 - Tracking Champ

I've had this series for quite a while - came across it on Amazon and thought it looked rather cute.  I bought all six books in the series (there were never any published after the sixth volume), and I've had them sitting on my "to-be-read" shelf for ... well, let's just say it's been about five years and leave it at that.  Not sure why I haven't picked one up to read before now, other than I simply continue to buy more books than I can possibly keep up with and read, so this one managed to stay near the bottom of the stack.  Well, I happened to glance at them when deciding what to read next, and I figured, "what the heck - let's see whether these were worth buying."  And they were!

Tracking Champ is the first of the Snoops Inc. series for young readers.  Written by Brandon Terrell, with illustrations by Mariano Epelbaum, Snoops Inc. is the name of the mystery club consisting of four middle schoolers who love to solve mysteries:  thirteen year old Keisha Turner, twelve year old twins Hayden and Jaden Williams, and fourteen year old Carlos Diaz.  While they may be in different grades, the four friends manage to work well together to solve any case - as the tagline on the back cover says, "No case too small ... we solve them all!"  And this first book finds the Snoops looking for their school's missing mascot, Champ.

It seems their principal has introduced the students to the school's new mascot - a slobbering bulldog named Champ, who also happens to be the principal's new pet.  Not everyone is thrilled about the new mascot.  The star basketball player is allergic, and the head cheerleader (who used to be friends with Keisha, but now they are at odds) would prefer a costumed mascot.  Well, someone has it out for the poor dog, because before one day even passes, the dog goes missing! The principal believes his student assistant was neglectful and failed to fasten the dog's cage, but she swears she locked the door.  The Snoops are on the case, determined to find out what really happened and where Champ is now!

Despite being a series for young readers (aimed at upper elementary and middle school age children), the book is actually written with a rather well-crafted mystery.  Terrell provides several likely suspects, uses a few red herrings to mislead the reader, and the actual culprit comes as a surprise, as it is not one of the likely suspects at all.  Epelbaum provides some wonderfully drawn illustrations inside, with one or two drawings in each chapter.  I admit to liking this, as I miss the days when the children's mystery books had interior illustrations (even if it were only four or five throughout the whole book!).  To me, interior illustrations add a little something 'extra' to the story as you read it.

Something else I enjoyed about this book is that the characters are diverse - Keisha is African-America, Carlos is Hispanic, and Hayden and Jaden are Caucasian - yet, there is no big deal made about this, the story does not focus on these ethnic differences, and one is not made to be inferior or superior to the other.  I've noticed a number of modern children's books are showing a tendency to throw in some "woke" ideals about race, ethnicity, and national origin, trying to impress upon the young reader that as a white American, he or she should be apologetic or ashamed;  Terrell, however, shows the children are simply accepting of one another, ignoring the so-called "differences" that a part of today's society wants to emphasize.  It made the book much more fun to read, as the emphasis was on their friendship, their individual talents, and the mystery itself.

The book did not take long to read (it is only 104 pages, with a number of internal illustrations), but it was enjoyable, and I look forward to reading the next book.

RATING:  8 thick, bright red dog collars out of 10 for providing young readers with a great new mystery series with fun characters and well-plotted mysteries!

The Case of the Bleeding Wall - a Dana Roberts novella

I'm not really sure how I came to find out about this book - whether I was strolling through Amazon and came across it, or whether it was recommended to me by someone.  All I know is that I was looking for a copy of the book and having a hard time finding it.  Then I happened across a copy being sold on eBay by the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library.  It was advertised as a hard cover copy of the book, with its dust jacket, so I bought it.  Well, color me surprised when it arrived, and not only is the book in pristine condition, but it turns out it is a special signed edition, limited to only 500 copies (mine is 393 of 500) and signed by both authors: Joe R. Lansdale and Kasey Lansdale!  Talk about a pleasant surprise!  And for those who may not recognize the name, Joe R. Lansdale is an award-winning writer who has written a number of horror novels, as well as quite a large number of comic books.  While I have some of his comic stories, this is actually my first book written by him (and his daughter).

The Case of the Bleeding Wall is identified as "a Dana Roberts novella," making one think that perhaps Dana Roberts is a character in an ongoing series of books.  Well, it turns out this book, published in 2016, is the prequel of sorts, to a collection of short stories starring the characters in this book (Terror is Our Business: Dana Roberts' Casebook of Horrors, which I am now going to have to hunt down).  And if you are thinking Dana Roberts is the main character of this book, as I did too, well, you'd be mistaken.  Turns out the main character, from whose point of the view the story is told, is actually Jana (don't recall seeing her last name ever mentioned in the book), a young woman who has experienced something out of the ordinary, and the only person she believes could understand is the supernatural sleuth, Dana Roberts.  At first, it seems the investigator has blown her off, but then she gets an opportunity to not only meet the famous ghost hunter, but to work along side her as her apprentice - including a free trip to Italy, free accommodations and food, free clothing, and a rather hefty stipend to boot!  How could she possibly say no?

For a relatively short story (less than 100 pages), there is definitely a lot of story here. While we don't exactly get a lot of backstory to either Dana or Jana, we certainly learn just what type of women both of these characters are.  Jana is a hesitant believer all things supernatural, and she uses humor and sarcasm to overcome her fear.  Dana, on the other hand, while not doubting the existence of things she refers to as "supernormal," firmly believes that all things either have a reasonable explanation or one day will (we just don't understand it now).  Dana is one that is used to being in charge, and she commands all attention on her when she enters a room.  Jana is willing to be a follower, but at the same time, she's not afraid to take a chance and take matters into her own hands when necessary.  The two make an unlikely pair, somewhat comparable to Sherlock Holmes and Watson (although it would probably be more accurate to compare them to Oscar and Felix - you know, The Odd Couple).  Actually, though, the two do sort of compliment one another, which makes for very enjoyable reading.

As for the story itself, once Jana convinces Dana that her story is real, Dana invites her to travel to Italy with her to investigate an alleged "haunting" - the catch?  The man who is asking for the assistance, Carlo, happens to be an ex of Dana.  Anyhow, he is concerned a house he owns - one he built for his fiance, Cincia (who is dead, by the way) - may be haunted.  His fiance left him just after they moved into the house because of the strange happenings, and died shortly thereafter.  He has tried renting the place out, but no one stays - everyone complains of the sounds, the smells, the shadows.  Carlo is hoping Dana can figure out what is really going on and get rid of it.  Jana thinks perhaps a rekindling of old feelings between Carlo and Dana might be also part of the plan.  But Dana Roberts is all business, and she sends Jana on some errands to find some magical elements - an errand that turns out to be a test (which Jana flies with passing colors - the girl is anything but dumb!).

Soon enough, Jana (and the reader) learns there is a lot more going on here than meets the eye.  The house truly is haunted, but everything they were told was a lie.  One of the walls in the house is a portal, one that can only be opened with blood.  And someone wants that portal opened to allow a demon into this world who can raise the dead.  Getting the idea, now?  Unfortunately, it's too late for Dana and Jana to turn back, so the detective and her apprentice must figure out a way to let loose a demon, stop it from wreaking havoc on the world, keep the dead ... well, dead, and trick the demon back through its portal, ultimately destroying the portal so it can never be used again.  Sure, nothing to it.  All in a day's work for supernormal detective, Dana Roberts!  Of course, it's a good thing Jana is along for this ride, because she is actually the one who saves the day (or night, as the case may be).

Overall, it was a really good read, and I found myself rather enjoying the characters.  I am relieved to know this is not the only Dana Roberts story out there.  I am definitely going to hunt down the collection of other short stories, because I have to read more of the continuing adventures of Dana and Jana!

RATING:  9 granola bars and cups of coffee out of 10 for giving the world a new sleuth, part Nancy Drew, part Supernatural - and one who is truly fun to read!

Missing at (the) Marshlands - the Third Arden Blake Mystery

Normally, I would not read a series book until either (a) I have the entire series, or (b) at least until I have the first books leading up the current one, so that I am reading them in order.  Rarely, if ever, do I read a series book out of order.  It's just not in me to do that.  But, with this book, I had to make an exception.  I've had this book for a long time, and it has sat on my shelf waiting for me to find books one and two, so I could have the complete three-book set.  But the Arden Blake series by Cleo F. Garis is not an easy series of books to find at reasonable prices.  Even without a dust jacket, then can command pretty high prices.  But, as seen with my last post, I recently read The Clue in the Jewel Box from the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, and it was brought to my attention during our discussion of that book that this particular volume of the Arden Blake series has some similar story elements to Jewel Box.  Well, my curiosity got the better of me, so I picked it up and read it.

Missing at (the) Marshlands is the third and final book of the Arden Blake series written by Cleo F. Garis, who is the daughter of authors Howard Garis and Lillian Garis.  It seems this series is identified as the "Arden Blake" mysteries, but Arden's two best friends, Sim Westover and Terry Landry, are featured equally, if not more than Arden herself.  Unlike Nancy Drew, with her friends Bess and George, Arden does not take the limelight.  Sim and Terry are both more gung-ho and adventurous than Arden, and they are more ready to take on the adventure of a good mystery.  In this story, Arden and Sim are joining Terry for the first couple of months of their summer vacation (after finishing their freshman year of college) at Oceanedge, where Terry's mother owns a cottage on the bay.  After solving two mysteries during the course of that first year of college, the three girls are ready for some downtime and summer fun.  But, of course, fate has other plans...

Before they even reach the cottage, they stumble across an abandoned car on the side of the road.  There is a Russian wolfhound left in the car, and the dog is none too friendly to strangers.  They find they owner somewhat further down the road, a very handsome stranger with a slight foreign accent.  They offer him a ride to the only garage in Oceanedge (which is owned and run by the town's Sheriff!) and learn that he is an artist who has rented the houseboat located not far from the cottage where the girls will be staying. After dropping him off, they head on to the cottage, and just in time, for a strong storm hits, with rain and wind lashing against the small home.  It is then when the mystery begins - a young girl is seen peering in one of the windows, but she takes off running when the girls try to talk to her.  Then, the stranger with the Russian wolfhound shows up in the middle of the storm, looking for matches.  He reveals his name is Dimitri Uzlov and his dog is Tania.  The girls are intrigued by this stranger to Oceanedge and are determined to learn more about him - and as the summer progresses, they do learn a lot more!

Uzlov ultimately becomes the center of the story, as he is the one "missing" at Marshlands (which is the name the natives of the area call Oceanedge).  Tania shows up at the girls' cottage, leading them back to the houseboat where they discover Uzlov is gone!  They know he would never abandon his dog, and they realize something is wrong when they go inside and find things out of place and one of the cabinet doors wrenched open - the very cabinet where Uzlov kept a precious gold snuff box he had shown the girls during a previous visit.  Now, this snuff box is important, as when Uzlov showed it to the girls, he shared with them a secret - when he pushed a secret spring, a bird comes out, spreads its wings, nods it head, and sings (pp. 85-86)!  Uzlov reveals it once belonged to a Russian Czar and is of great value (p. 85).  This description seems to be taken from the Faberge egg known as the Bay Tree (also called the Orange Tree egg), crafted in 1911 for Nicholas II to present to his mother, Empress Maria Feodorovna (Faberge - Bay Tree Egg), in that both have a secret spring that reveals a feathered songbird that rises, flaps its wings, turns it head, and sings!  So, back to the story, it seems both the Russian artist and his valuable snuff box are missing!

The girls are left at a loss to explain what happened to the man.  During the course of the mystery, they meet young Melissa, the girl who peered in the window their first night in town, whose father is overly protective of her and, to the girls' way of thinking, somewhat abusive.  They also meet a woman named Olga, who comes to visit Uzlov and who seems to make instant friends with Melissa.  There is also the strange man who shows up unexpectedly to visit Uzlov, and who appears to have been the last person to see the Russian artist before he disappeared!  The only problem is, the girls have no knowledge of the man's name or how to find him.  They also meet a female investigator who comes to Oceanedge to learn more about young Melissa, who apparently has an elderly aunt that wants to provide for the girl, but has been inhibited by the girl's father.  This story thread seems to have nothing whatsoever to do with the main plot, but as with all children's mysteries, they seemingly disconnected mysteries eventually tie up nicely into one.

 

Their only clue to finding the missing artist seems to be a torn piece of envelope that has a partial name and address on it, and the girls must work hard to determine what the missing letters are to determine the actual address (which they ultimately do and send off a telegram in the hopes of getting a favorable response!). The town's sheriff/mechanic is not of much help in the beginning, but by the end of the story, when it comes time to confront Melissa's father about the girl's aunt providing for her, he is able to provide some much needed help.  In fact, it is the sheriff who unwittingly discovers the missing Russian in the most unlikely of places!

Now, for those astute readers out there who are fans of Nancy Drew, you may be thinking, "Boy, some of these plot elements sound awfully familiar..."  Well, that's probably because there is a lot of similarities between this story and The Clue in the Jewel Box (which I just reviewed prior to this book!).  Both books feature a Russian man who is an artist ... both books feature a dog that is extremely unfriendly towards people ... both books feature a box (snuff box here, a Faberge egg in Jewel Box) that contains a singing bird, is valuable, and is from Russian royalty; both feature an elderly woman looking for a relative to whom she will leave her fortune; both feature a clue found from a paper with a partial address that the young sleuths must use ingenuity to determine the full address; and both feature a bit of misdirection with regard to the identities of some of the characters.  This book was published in 1934, nine (9) years before the publication of Jewel Box, leaving one to wonder if perhaps Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, who wrote the outline for Jewel Box, might have lifted a few ideas from this book when plotting her own book nearly a decade later!

One interesting tidbit is the title of the book.  As noted by Jennifer White on her series books website, the cover of the book and the dust jacket list the title as Missing at the Marshlands; however, the inside title page, list of books, and the headers at the top of each page of the story show the title as simply Missing at Marshlands (dropping "the").  As Jennifer points out on her website, in the story, the natives simply refer to the area as "Marshlands," not "the Marshlands," meaning the true title of the book should probably be that displayed on the title page and interior pages of the book, Missing at Marshlands.  This is why I put "the" in parentheses in the title of this blog post, because there are two possible titles.  I have to wonder if the "the" on the cover and the dust jacket was a misprint, or if that was the originally planned title, but "the" was dropped when the book went to print (being too late at the time for the boards and dust jacket art to be changed)?  Guess at this point in time, we will never know for sure.

Another item of note is the fact that this book has a dedication page, on which the author thanks her friend, Dorothy O'Connor, "Who saw the Czar's snuffbox and told me its tragic story."  Now, this raises a very interesting question.  Did Cleo Garis' friend happen to attend "The Hammer Collection of Russian Imperial Art Treasures" at the department story, Lord & Taylor that was on display in 1933, the year prior to the publication of this book?  Thanks to my good friend, Pamela Hancock, I was able to view the program from that display, and listed as Item No. 4469 was a "Gold Snuff-Box, handsomely chased, in the period when Russia's silver and goldsmiths were at their best ... This was a coronation present to Alexander II."  Right after that is listed Item No. 4483, which was another "Gold Snuff-Box bearing the monogram and crown of Alexander II, grandfather of Nicholas II, the last Czar of Russia ... The monogram and crown are studded with diamonds."  Either one of these could have been the inspiration for the snuff-box in Marshlands.  Considering the number of items from this program that appeared in The Clue in the Jewel Box, it is evident that Harriet (or someone extremely close to her) attended the display, so perhaps Dorothy O'Connor was also there at the same time!  Definitely something to think about...

As with Jewel Box, this book by Cleo Garis offers up a fictional tale of mystery with plenty of references to the real world mixed in for good measure - although admittedly, this one does not offer anywhere near as much as Jewel Box does!).  Now I am definitely interesting in hunting down the first two books in this series, so I can read them and see if they are as enjoyable as this one.  Plus, there is a fourth book mentioned at the end of this story, called The Hermit of Pirate Light.  There is no indication that book was ever published, and what is interesting is that six years later, in 1940, Cleo's mother published the last book in her Melody Lane series, which was titled The Hermit of Proud Hill.  According to the end of this book, The Hermit of Pirate Light was to tell "what happened when the girls spent another summer together" (p. 248).  While I haven't read the last Melody Lane story yet, I did peek at the first few pages, and not surprisingly, the story takes place at the beginning of summer!  This, of course, begs the question - did Cleo have a manuscript, at the very least an outline, for her fourth Arden Blake book, and since it was never published, did her mother, Lillian Garis, simply repurpose it for her final Melody Lane book?  Inquiring minds want to know!  I have a good friend who knows members of the Garis family, and he will be checking to see if they can shed any light on this mystery, so I can't wait to find out!

RATING:  8 brilliantly painted wooden bracelets out of 10 for an interesting mystery that introduced me to some great new characters!

Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #20 - The Clue in the Jewel Box

Without a doubt, this Nancy Drew books holds a considerable amount of references to actual history.  In fact, there was enough for Pamela Hancock to write not one, not two, but THREE lengthy articles in The Sleuth about just this one book!  (And for those who don't know, The Sleuth is a Nancy Drew fanzine - Pam's articles can be found in issues 76 - Mar/Apr 2019, 80 - Nov/Dec 2019, and 82 - Spring 2020, and these issues can be purchased at The Sleuth website, The Sleuth.)  Because of the great detail set forth in those articles regarding how this particular book draws many elements of the real life events surrounding Russian Tsar Nicholas II and his family, I'm not going to address those elements of the story in this post - if you want to truly learn the wealth of information and documentation about that part of the tale, check out those articles in The Sleuth.  No, this article is going to look at the many other elements of the story that stood out to me as I was reading the book.

The Clue in the Jewel Box is the twentieth book in the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, originally published back in 1943.  The book was written by Mildred Wirt Benson, based on an outline provided by Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, and the cover art was painted by Russell H. Tandy.  The story features two mysteries that Nancy is trying to solve simultaneously - one involves a pickpocket that seems to be terrorizing River Heights and escaping capture by the police, while the other involves an elderly woman who is hoping to one day find her lost grandson.  The elderly woman turns out to be Madam Marie Alexandra, who is royalty from an unnamed European country.  The only image she has of her grandson is a small photo of him as a young boy in a sailor's suit (p. 4).  When visiting her home, Nancy is shown a number of expensive items, including a pink enamel Easter egg (p. 6) that contains a nightingale that sings a very odd song (p. 30).  Ultimately, the bird's song leads Nancy to a clue in a jewel box owned by Mrs. Alexandra, which in turn leads to the true identity of her grandson!

 

But the backstory behind that part of the mystery can be found in Pam's articles.  It is the other mystery in this book to which we turn our attention here - the one about the pickpocket.  This mystery comes into play in the very first chapter, right after Nancy helps Mrs. Alexandra home and meets the antique dealer, Mr. Faber.  Nancy happens to see a man running away (p. 8), and it turns out he was a pickpocket, having just stolen a man's wallet.  What is truly interesting about the victim is his name: Francis Baum.  Now, anyone with any love of books will automatically recognize that name as belonging to a very famous author.  Yes, that's right - one L. Frank Baum (1856-1919), author of the famous Oz series of books.  Whether this name was in the outline provided by Adams, or whether it was a creation of Benson, we will likely never know, but it's clear that one of them wanted to give a nod to the author of children's books.  Of course, this is not the only name in the book that pays homage to real people.

 

Getting back to the pickpocket, though - while Nancy did not actually witness this first theft, it is unusual how many thefts she witnesses after this.  She spies the man lifting another wallet on a ferry (p. 20), but can't get to him before he escapes.  She is then nearby when a woman has her purse stolen (p. 66), and then Nancy herself is a victim when the pickpocket steals a hair ornament from her (pp. 74-75).  Later, while riding a ferris wheel with Ned, she sees yet another man get his wallet lifted (p. 82).  Later still, she arrives at Mr. Faber's store just seconds after he is robbed by the same pickpocket (p. 127).  At the fashion show where Nancy is modeling a dress (yes, just go with it), she hears a woman scream that her pocketbook has been stolen (p. 143).  I'm surprised the police did not suspect Nancy, since she seemed to be at so many of the crime scenes!  Actually, what I'm more surprised about is that Nancy takes so longer to figure out the fact there are two pickpockets who are working in concert to keep Nancy, and the police fooled.  Of course, she does eventually figure it out, and (shock of all shocks!) she provides the police with the information so they can capture the crooks!

Now, getting back to those names in this book, the name of one of the two pickpockets is David Dorrance.  A quick search online reveals that there was a man named David W. Dorrance who died in the early 1940s.  Born in Ohio, the real Dorrance lost an arm and ultimately invented the artificial arm, since he was dissatisfied with the mechanics that science had to offer at the time.  I found this a bit of a funny coincidence that a pickpocket, who must use his arm skillfully to commit the crimes, is named for a man who invented an artificial arm.  Again, we don't know whether this was in Adams' outline or if it was a name Benson chose, but it certainly fit the character well.

Another name is that of the artist who becomes infatuated with the designer whose dress Nancy is modeling.  His name is R.H. Ellington (pp. 111-12).  This is an interesting coincidence since, at the time this book was published, Russell H. Tandy was the artist providing the covers and internal illustrations for the Nancy Drew mysteries!  Perhaps Adams or Benson thought that would be a nice nod to all of the wonderful art Tandy had provided up until that point in the series.

Wilber DeWolf is yet another name that could have been taken from a real person.  DeWolf, in the story, is a professional designer (p. 164) who is announcing the prizes at the fashion show.  In the real world, Elsie De Wolfe was considered to be America's first interior designer, who started her business in 1905 - which means she would have been well on her way to success by the time this book was written.  Perhaps Adams or Benson decided to honor her by giving the designer in this story the same surname.

Apart from all of the names, there is another aspect of this book that I found unique.  In a standard Nancy Drew mystery, there is usually a mention of previous mysteries solved, and at the end of the story, a quick mention of the next mystery.  Rarely, though, does the author cite to the mystery being solved in the book itself (although it does happen once in a while).  In this book, however, the phrase "Clue in the Jewel Box" is used repeatedly throughout the story, being used no less than six times in the span of 200+ pages!  I found that odd, since the use of the phrase does not read naturally at times, and feels very contrived in its placement.

Also, I would be remiss if I did not take note of a quick reference Nancy made to her family.  Everyone knows that her father is Carson Drew and that her unnamed mother died when she was just a small child.  Next to nothing is mentioned of Nancy's extended family, except for her maternal great-grandmother who is featured in The Clue of the Whistling Bagpipes.  I honestly thought there were no other references, but this book proved me wrong.  In just a passing statement, when Nancy is looking over Mrs. Alexandra's jewel box, trying to find a way to open it, she tells the older woman, "When I was a little girl my grandmother gave me a very old music box..." (p. 160).  We are not told whether this is Nancy's maternal or paternal grandmother, but it does indicate Nancy knew at least some of her extended family, even if she never talks about them.  I wonder whatever happened to that music box her grandmother gave her...

Something else that I cannot forget to mention is the trip Nancy and her friends take to Star Island (p. 106).  This is the first reference to this island, and it's quite a coincidence because just one year prior, in 1942, Whitman published a book titled Bonita Granville and the Mystery of Star Island (you can find my review of this particular book here: Star Island).  True fans of Nancy Drew will immediately recognize Bonita Granville as the actress who portrayed Nancy Drew in four films that came out in the 1930s.  Surely it is more than just a "coincidence" that Star Island, the focus of a mystery starring Bonita Granville, suddenly pops up in a Nancy Drew mystery just one year later.  Again, who knows whether this was in the outline from Adams or an idea used by Benson when writing the book, but it does give the reader pause to wonder.

 

Before I sign off, I have to highlight a rather humorous exchange that takes place between Nancy and the landlady of a boarding house where Francis Baum is residing.  When Nancy tries to obtain information about Baum, the following exchange takes place:

"...He hasn't phoned a girl once since he came here," she smirked.  "He's kind of queer, anyhow."

"You say he is rather queer?" Nancy pursued the matter.  "In what way?"

...

"Does Mr. Baum have many callers?"

"A friend once in awhile - never any girl friends," the landlady replied.

(p. 45, The Clue in the Jewel Box).

Obviously, reading this dialogue today, the words take on a completely different connotation than they likely did back in 1943; however, a quick search online does reveal that the term "queer" has been used to refer to homosexuality for as far back as the late 19th century and into the early 20th century.  This leaves the reader to wonder if perhaps Benson was poking a little fun at Baum, perhaps intimating that this character was actually gay (specifically considering the emphasis placed by the landlady on the fact that Baum had no girls visit and never once called a girl!).

There truly is a plethora of things to discuss when looking at this book.  Obviously, I haven't touched on any of the Russian royalty references; but there is also the discussion of the "Kohinoor diamond" (p. 40), which is obviously taken from the real life Koh-i-noor diamond; the reference to Hotel "Claymore" (p. 68), as Claymore seems to be a go-to for Benson in many of her series books; the appearance of the "Red Lion Inn" (p. 166-67), which is a real Inn in Stockbridge, Massachusetts; and the sub-plot involving the recreation center for the Boys Club (p. 22), which is left hanging without any resolution; and the fact that, while never actually mentioning the war, it is clear the story takes place under wartime conditions, as Nancy and her friends travel most places by walking or bicycle, and Nancy is not freely spending money as she usually does in the books.

While there is quite a bit that goes on in this book, I must say this is definitely one of the better written stories from these original texts - a must-read for every Nancy Drew fan!

RATING:  10 four-poster mahogany beds with carved swans on the headboard out of 10 for integrating history and the real world so seamlessly into this fictional mystery story!

Twilight Grimm - a Silverline Comics mini-series

Anyone who knows me and/or has been following this blog for any length of time know how much I enjoy comic books published by independent companies.  The quality of the comics pushed by the bigger companies (DC and Marvel) has dropped drastically over the last several decades, and I don't enjoy their titles as much as I did when I first started reading comics.  But small, independent companies who sell their books at small tables at small comic conventions many times offer much better stories than DC or Marvel could ever come up with today.  I've noticed the Silverline books at a number of local conventions, but I never picked any up - until the recent Daytona Beach Comic Convention in September.  Talking with Roland Mann, who had a display of various titles from the publisher, I saw the cover to the first issue of this series, and well - when they say "don't judge a book by its cover," let's say I've never really followed that rule!

 

Twilight Grimm captured my attention first because of its main character featured on the cover.   The man with the shoulder-length brown hair, holding up a lighted object in his right hand, wearing a long, gray overcoat.  At first glance, I would have sworn this was the Eighth Doctor, as portrayed by Paul McGann (c'mon - tell me you've seen Doctor Who, yes?!).  Roland Mann was quick to correct me, as this man was the title character of the book - a destroyer of vampires and protector of the innocent, in a world where the powerful - both in money and influence - prey upon the weak.  Not exactly a new concept.  I mean, let's face reality - there have been plenty of books, movies, television shows, and comics that deal with vampire hunters over the course of the last century or more.  But that Doctor Who-esque cover definitely had me intrigued, and since it was only a four-issue mini-series, I decided to give it a try.

First, let's think about that name.  Twilight Grimm.  I have to wonder if the name is a combination of two popular vampire/monster-related properties.  Twilight, obviously, was the teen-vampire books turned films that were popular a few years back.  Thankfully, though, the vampires in this comic do not "sparkle."  Grimm, on the other hand, was an excellent television show about a descendant of the Brothers Grimm who hunted down the monsters that lived in the real world, hiding behind veils so normal people could not see them for what they were.  Put the two names together, and you have a vampire/monster hunter! Hmmmmm...

Second, let's look at the overall story.  Hallowed Heights is a city living in peace and comfort.  But beware - if you break the law, you face stiff penalties - including being outcast from the protective walls of the city, forced to face the run down outskirts of Hallowed Heights, which are filled with despair and death, having been completely taken over by the vampires.  The humans who do live outside the walls of Hallowed Heights live in constant fear.  And the vampires who live there are always looking for new prey - new food - fresh blood!  A young woman - a thief - is thrust out into the blood zone as the sentence for her crime.  She quickly discovers that her time there may be short, as she is chased by hungry vampires - only to be rescued at the last moment by the man in the overcoat ... a man carrying a shining cross, a gun, and some very special knives.  The vampires fear him.  The humans seek his protection.  And for young Suzi Q (yes, that is her name), he is her savior.  For the night, anyway.  At the same time, another young woman is enjoying what she believes to be a wild night at a club in the blood zone.  When her car is attacked as she is preparing to leave, only Grimm can save her.  And last, but not least, is the young vampire woman who steps out of the shadows to warn Grimm.  Scarlet - a vampire who loves Grimm - has come to warn him that war is coming, as her vampire brethren are preparing to launch an all-out war against the humans in Hallowed Heights!

That's quite a bit of story for just the first issue, which, for me, was a nice surprise.  So many of today's mainstream comics are easily read in under five minutes because they are filled with huge splash pages or two- to three-panel pages with the focus on the art and less on the story.  Twilight Grimm, however, gives readers a feast of story and art that will take the reader a bit more than just five minutes to enjoy.  In the second issue, we learn about Grimm's "origin" story, as well as why the priest in the blood zone stays there to help him. The third issue sets up the events for the final battle, and in the fourth issue, we get a superbly written and drawn climactic fight between the vampires and the humans ... the rich and the poor ... the haves and the have-nots ... the righteous and the evil.  Not all vampires are bad and not all humans are good, and this story brings across that point beautifully.  And while that final conflict seems to bring to conclusion the initial battle, it is definitely not the end of the war.  The four issues tell a complete story, but there is definitely room left for more stories to come!

I have to give the writer, R.A. Jones, credit for coming up with a unique take on an old concept.  I know it's not easy to do, but Jones provides readers with an intriguing story with characters who are anything but stereotypes.  And I am SO grateful Jones followed the old-school writers and provided a background story that didn't require a six-issue arc to tell - instead, he provides readers with everything they need to know about Grimm in just a few pages.  As for the other characters, readers get to learn more about them as the story progresses, in a natural way, and I'm sure there is still plenty more to learn about all of the supporting cast (a writer has to save something for future stories, right?).  The art, by Rob Davis, works well with the story, and Davis has a pretty good grasp on facial expressions - issue one alone provides plenty of perfect examples: Suzi's hopelessness on page 1, panel 3 ... her fear on page 4, panel 6 ... Ms. Dupree's high on page 17, panel 2, just to name a few.  And the crowded club scene on page 16!  That page truly sparkles with life!  If there is a follow-up mini-series to this one, they better keep Davis as the artist!

Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable read.  With quality books like this, Silverline is sure to rise quickly in the comic book world!

RATING:  9 balloons filled with holy water out of 10 for opening up a whole new world of vampire vs. human warfare with a new kind of slayer!

Amanda Lester and the Green Monkey Gotcha (Amanda Lester Mysteries No. 7)

It's been two years (almost to the day!) since I read my last Amanda Lester mystery, so I figured it was about time I picked up the next book in the series - which, I realize, is not the most recent, since Amazon shows there are currently 10 books published in the series.  So I am three books behind at this point.  But, that's okay, as it appears there have been no new stories since book 10 was published, so I have some time to catch up.  This series is sort of like a Harry Potter world for detectives - a group of children with detectives in their heritage join together at a secret school where they train to be detectives, all the while fighting off a villainous school that teaches criminals led by none other than a descendant of Moriarty.  And that shouldn't be much a surprise, since the title character is a descendant of Inspector Lestrade.  The series started off rather mysterious (as any good mystery should!), but as it has progressed, I can't deny the fact that the stories and situations have gotten more and more outlandish, and this book - well, this book definitely takes the cake!

Amanda Lester and the Green Monkey Gotcha is the "green book" for this series.  Like the Connie Blair series back in the day, author Paula Berinstein chose to go with a color theme for this series, each book title referencing a mystery related to a different color - pink, orange, purple, blue, red, gold, and now green.  Based on the title, I went into the book believing a green monkey would be the focus of the story (as in the previous books, the object in the title was a huge part of the mystery).  Oddly enough, the "green monkey" played a very small part of this book - perhaps that's what the "gotcha" part of the title means!

In any event, the story opens not with our title character, but with Blixus Moriarty and his now-known-to-be twin brother, Professor Christopher Scribbish ... and then students Simon and Clive ... then back to Blixus in his dungeon cell ... then Scapulus Holmes, sitting in the dungeon cell next to his mortal enemy.  Amanda Lester doesn't actually make her first appearance in this story until the third chapter, as she and her friends try to figure out how to locate the Detective Bible that has been lost.  Simon may know its whereabouts, but he won't reveal how he knows.  So, the kids head off to search for the Bible ... but out of nowhere, Amanda's crazy, fifty-two year old cousin, Despina, is the one who happens to find it in the reeds at Lake Windermere (the very location all of the students were searching for the book!).  This does not make sense story wise, since these are supposed to be some of the world's smartest kids, and yet they don't find the very book they are looking for, which happens to just be lying in the weeds next to the lake?  Feels like a cop-out to me.

Of course, that is only a drop in the bucket for the directions this story takes.  They are able to decipher a portion of the Bible pages (which appear to have been changed when the pages of the book were soaked in the lake), which indicates the importance of a green monkey.  I assumed this would launch into a book-long search for this mysterious green monkey, but no - Amanda and Fern do a few pages of searching here and there, but until the end of the story, there is little said about the green monkey and any importance it may hold for the detectives.  Rather, readers are treated to a constant, revolving story of the way-too-many characters in this series already and get introduced to even more (including a dwarf girl with whom Holmes falls in love!).  Simon and Clive are working on a way to stop Scribbus from mentally communicating with his twin brother ... David and Gordon are trying to prove their own worth as detectives by solving a string of thefts (during which they meet Delara Watson, another new character who is a descendant of - well, I think that's pretty obvious) ... Nick is doing all he can to protect his sister ... Amanda is working to decipher the code in the Detective's Bible ... and then you've got Hugh, Taffeta, Lila, Waltz, Eustace, and so many others ... I don't even know if a daytime soap opera could manage to juggle all of these characters and stories!

Oh, and did I mention that Amanda's dad makes an unexpected return in this book?  And there's the tiny, little part of the story where the Moriarty brothers combine their mental capabilities to control those around them.  Ah, and we mustn't forget the mysterious group of monks who show up at the last minute and literally freeze everyone with a blink of the eye.  Literally!  I'm not kidding!  The series has definitely gone from being grounded in clues and facts to science fiction and fantasy.  And a little bit of supernatural as well (because I haven't even mentioned the ghost yet...).  And, oh, yes, there's also the side-story involving Amanda's decision to use Darius' film studio and begin a new film project with Rhys Cowsill.  If you're confused yet, don't worry - there is so much going on in this book, I feel like we need scorecards to keep track of everything and everyone!

The first few books in this series seemed more focus; however, as the series has progressed, it feels like there are just more and more things thrown into the mix to see just how fantastical the stories can become, and I'm left wondering if Berinstein even knows where she is taking the story and the characters.  And, yes, the "green monkey" did finally come into play at the very end of the story in a very contrived way - very anticlimactic, indeed.

I have not yet purchased books 8, 9, and 10, and I haven't yet decided if I will.  Between the craziness of the stories, the non-stop growing cast of characters, the unnecessarily vulgarities scattered throughout this books - I'm just not sure if I want to continue reading these books.  I suppose we shall see...

RATING:  5 bouquets of midnight slippers out of 10 for at least reuniting all of these detectives for a climactic battle unlike any other in this series!

Again Peyton Place - the first Peyton Place novel by Roger Fuller

It was just a fictional town.  A small, New England town.  But author Grace Metalious opened up the eyes of the world to what life in a small town could really be like with her first Peyton Place novel back in 1956.  A story filled with murder, suicide, rape, incest, and small town piety that was a shocking tale for its time.  A movie of the same name hit the big screens the very next year, and it surprisingly stayed true to the book.  Two years after that, Metalious returned to that little fictional town to continue the story of Allison MacKenzie and the repercussions of her book about her hometown in Return to Peyton Place.  Somewhat shorter and not quite as shocking, that book was made into a film two years after its publication.  That same year, a completely different version of Peyton Place made its way into homes across America in a nighttime soap opera.  Definitely toned down for the small screen, the characters were the same, but the relationships, backgrounds, and stories had changed.  Then,six years after the second film and the TV show debuted, a new series of books hit the shelves, written by Roger Fuller.

Again Peyton Place is the first book of a series based on the two novels by Metalious.  One might think it would pick up after the ending of Return to Peyton Place; however, this series is not exactly a "sequel." Rather, these books tell the stories of other characters who live in Peyton Place and who, in some instances, interact with the characters from the original books.  This first book tells the story of Jamey ("Jay") Bramble, a rough and tumble young man from Shacktown (the poor part of Peyton Place on the wrong side of the tracks - the part of the city that the good, upstanding citizens of Peyton Place want to pretend does not exist, wherein live people that those caring, Christian citizens of Peyton Place want to keep away from their families) and Eileen Welsh, a somewhat innocent young girl whose family has just moved into the upper class neighborhood of Peyton Place.  Two characters who live two completely different and separate lives, but whose fates are intertwined and whose stories definitely lead to what the back cover of this book calls a "shattering climax" (which, quite frankly, is the appropriate choice of words, considering what goes on in this book!).

To a certain extent, Fuller's story is a take-off of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.  A young boy and a young girl who fall in love, but whose families are determined to do anything to keep them apart.  And whose story has a tragic ending.  Jay has not had an easy life growing up in Shacktown.  His father is dead and his mother is a drunk.  His sister is basically a whore, and Jay has learned how to use his sister's "talents" to extort and/or steal money from the men she beds.  Neither he nor his sister have been to school in years, and they have succumbed to the fact that they will have to lie, cheat, and steal just to survive for the rest of their lives. And Jay, being especially large for his age (in literally every way), has found he can make money the same way his sister does. Until Michael Rossi (you remember him?  the new principal at Peyton Place's school, and the new husband for Constance MacKenzie) takes young Jay under his wing and brings him back to school to give him a chance to succeed.

Meanwhile, Eileen is not thrilled to be living in Peyton Place.  She was quite happy with her old home and old school and old friends.  But it doesn't take long fore the beautiful, red-headed Irish girl to make new friends and become the enter of attention at her new school.  So, when Jay Bramble suddenly shows up in her class, things begin to heat up.  Eileen's mother does not want Jay in that school, and she rallies a number of Peyton Place's more prominent citizens to join her crusade to get rid of Jay.  When that doesn't happen, she goes after Mike Rossi for bringing the boy into the school with her daughter.  When that fails, she enlists the help of her husband's boss - Leslie Harrington (you remember him?  the old man who runs the town mill and likes to think he runs the whole town - the same man who owns the property in Shacktown and manages to keep the people there living in filth and poverty).

But, despite the odds, Jay and Eileen end up together, and Eileen brings out a side of Jay that no one else can believe.  A Jay that smiles.  A Jay that tells jokes.  A Jay that is shy and reluctant to even kiss Eileen.  Jay is doing great at football in school.  He is studying hard to improve his grades so he can get into college.  He is working harder than ever at the print shop, so much so that his boss is amazed.  Everything seems to be going his way at last, and Rossi couldn't be prouder to have proved the judgmental townsfolk of Peyton Place wrong.  Until Jay's past comes back to haunt him.  One stupid mistake, and Jay finds himself nearly beaten to death, Eileen nearly raped, and a town vindicated in their animosity towards anyone who comes from Shacktown.  If anyone was expecting a happy ending to this tale, well, they are in for a huge disappointment.

What I liked about this book is that Fuller manages to integrate these new characters into the lives of the already existing characters seamlessly.  And, as indicated above, he does not pick up after the end of Metalious' second book; rather, this story starts before Selina Cross' trial from the original Peyton Place, and spans a number of years - through the trial, through Allison MacKenzie's publication of her first novel, and beyond.  His writing of Michael Rossi and Constance MacKenzie is pretty spot on, with their fun bantering - and he keeps Dr. Matt Swain consistent, as a man who cares not only for the welfare of his patients, but also for the underprivileged kids in the Shacktown community.  Fuller definitely knows how to build the drama and how to write characters that you grow to love or hate, and the fact that I was completely ticked off by what happens to poor Jay at the end of the story is a testament to Fuller's writing ability.

That being said, there are a few things about the book I did not like.  First, I did not like what happened to poor Jay at the end!  (Yes, I know I just said in the preceding paragraph that what happens is a testament to Fuller's writing, but that doesn't mean I was happy about the ending!)  I don't mean that it didn't make for a great story, or even that it was unrealistic - in fact, what happens is probably what would happen in real life.  But I was truly hoping to see a story of full redemption, to see a Shacktown boy rise above his circumstances and show those small-minded people of Peyton Place how wrong they are.  But that didn't happen.  Second, I did not like how graphic Fuller was when it came to the sex scenes (and let me tell you, there are a LOT more sex scenes in this one book than in both of Metalious' novels combined!).   While not fully explicit, Fuller does go beyond subtlety in his descriptions, and there is a lot of this book that focuses on sex - with Jay's brother, with Jay himself, with some of the other characters, and even with Eileen.  Considering this book was published in 1967, I'm rather surprised he was able to get away with as much as he did.  I think a lot of the scenes could have been implied rather than bluntly stated, but perhaps that was the shock value Fuller was intending for his readers.

Nevertheless, I did enjoy the story, and I think Fuller did a fine job of keeping to Metaloius' original concept for Peyton Place and is characters.  I'm definitely looking forward to reading the rest of Fuller's books in this series.

RATING:  8 bottles of applejack liquor out of 10 for a saucy, sexy, scathing return to the small-town that has more scandals than anyone can imagine!

Whitman Mystery Stories - Joyce of the Secret Squadron (A Captain Midnight Adventure)

The Whitman Publishing Company definitely put out plenty of self-contained mysteries for children back in the day, and it's clear that quite a few of them were "authorized editions," containing stories about licensed characters and actual actors and actresses.  I have read several of them already, starring actresses such as Bonita Granville and Betty Grable, as well as fictional characters as such Tillie the Toiler, Boots, and Invisible Scarlet O'Neil, and for the most part, they have been pretty good.  So, whenever I'm out and about, and I see any Whitman books with fairly decent dust jackets (they don't have to be perfect), I pick them up.  This book is one of my more recent finds, and while it is no much of a mystery, it was still a fairly okay read.

Joyce of the Secret Squadron is based on the old radio show, Captain Midnight (as the tagline on the cover of the book indicates - A Captain Midnight Adventure).  While I had heard the name before, I had never actually listened to any episodes of the show, nor had I watched any of the televisions shows or films based on the character.  I also had never read any of his comic book adventures published by Fawcett Publications back in the day.  So, I went into this story with pretty much no knowledge of the characters.  Which is probably a good thing, as it gave me a fresh perspective on all of them.  What I did find interesting is that even though Joyce Ryan is toted as the main character, based on the title and the photo of one of the actresses who played the character on the radio show, she does not necessarily play a prominent part in the story.  In fact, none of the characters seem to be the "main" character - rather, Captain Midnight, Chuck Ramsay (the Captain's young ward), Joyce Ryan, and Ichabod "Ikky" Mudd (the team's mechanic) all seem to share some equal time in the story.  Thus, in effect, this really is more of a Captain Midnight adventure than a Joyce Ryan story.

As for the story itself, it is definitely more of a war tale than a mystery.  Set near the start of World War II (the book was published in 1942, after all), the Secret Squadron are engaged by the United States government to search for the missing Flying Wing - an experimental plane believed to have gone down somewhere in the Pacific, possibly near the islands where Captain Midnight and his team have their secret base.  The Captain and his team - Joyce, Chuck, and Ikky - are only more than willing to help out their government, but they find themselves first having to help Mrs. F. W. Bosmouth, who happens to be searching for her missing brother in the same area of the Pacific.  What the Captain and his gang do not realize is that Mrs. Bosmouth is actually Carla Rotan, an agent of the Barracuda, Captain Midnight's deadly nemesis.  She has been tasked with the job of not only finding the Secret Squadron's hidden base, but also to find out what they knew of the Flying Wing.  The Barracuda's forces descend upon the Secret Squadron while Carla is there, hoping to convince the Captain that she is sincere, but Joyce has her doubts about the woman - and let's face it, a woman's intuition is rarely wrong!

From here, the story becomes a search and (hopefully) rescue mission, as the Captain, Joyce, Chuck, and Ikky fly out to search the Pacific Islands for the lost Flying Wing.  They eventually locate an island, where they land and begin their search - only to face the arrival of Mrs. Bosmouth and her pilot, as well as a boat filled with some very rough men.  Joyce and Chuck come across a crashed plane, but it is not the one they are looking for - rather, it's an even older plane, whose pilot they discover has been living isolated on the island for fifteen years!  Between their distrust of Mrs. Bosmouth, their fight to keep the ruffians at bay, and their attempts to help the stranded pilot, the Secret Squadron team has their hands full.  Needless to say, all is revealed in the end, and there is even a surprising change of heart for one of the villainous characters, who provides much needed aid to the Captain and his team (this, thanks to the quick-thinking and persuasive talk of young Joyce Ryan).  There are a few air battles, ground battles, and even a battle on the ocean to keep the "excitement" in the story, and while Joyce is somewhat timid during these battles, she definitely proves her worth to the team throughout the book.

 

One thing that must be noted is that the story is definitely a product of its time, having been written not too long after the U.S. became involved in World War II.  There is some very "colorful" language used to describe the United States' enemies of the time, and the characters' references to them would certainly raise a lot of outrage in today's overly sensitive society.  But, when placed in the proper context, these derogatory names are actually appropriate, as it is what people would have called them back in the early 1940s.  Therefore, it's important to read the story with its setting and context in mind.

 

The author, R.R. Winterbotham (1904-71) was a newspaperman turned author, and he wrote several books for Whitman Publishing Company (apparently writing at least 60 books in the Big Little format, including a series of those books about a character called "Maximo, the Amazing Superman," which I will need to track down).  In addition to this Captain Midnight novel, he also wrote a Captain Midnight story in the Big Little format.  The art in this book is by Erwin L. Darwin (1906-77), which I discovered is a pseudonym for Erwin L. Hess.  Before illustrating books for Whitman, Hess was a comic book artist for Dell Publications.  While his art is not what I would call "beautiful," like some of the other artists I have seen in the Whitman books, I think his almost cartoon-style art fits for the characters.  And that is one thing I do have to say the Whitman books have going for them, at least in my opinion - they have plenty of interior illustrations and some truly great end pages.  I wish the books of today would take a page out of the books of yesteryear and give readers some great illustrations to compliment the stories!

While not really a mystery, I do think this book makes a great addition to the Whitman authorized editions and Whitman's collection of "Stories for Girls and Boys featuring your favorite characters."

RATING:  7 brand new Codographs out of 10 for